renew current tenant??

[Douglass Belt]

I have a SFH (in another state from which I live) which has been rented to the same tenant for two years. Single mother, 1 child. the lease comes due this summer, and wondering if I should renew her or look for someone else. Never had an issue with renting-near many colleges, and businesses. She has done a good job taking care of the house, has fixed things on her own, landscaped, painted, installed new ceiling fans, etc. and not a tenant who will call me "for a plugged toilet" as she can fix that on her own. She is pretty handy with many things. She is on time with rent and for the most part pretty quiet. the down side is I think she has some emotional and/or psychological problems, as once and a while she will flip out. For instance, when she found a drip in the basement (caused by condensation on a pipe during the summer), called me telling me there are pools of water, called the fire inspector, and housing department, etc. as you can imagine it is quite a ordeal. That was just one of a few incidents. As I am not able to just drive over, (250 miles away) it is not easy to just fix it or know what is really the truth. These "flip out" sessions happen once and a while and causes major headaches. It is hard to deal with her, as you never know who you will be dealing with on the phone...the "nice" tenant or the "I-am-going-into-panic-mode" tenant.

What are your opinions on having her stay. On one hand, it would be nice to have her there, no move out, cleanup, showings for prospective renters, etc. and on the other, it may be nice to get someone else in there that is more "stable" mentally.....any thoughts, suggestions?